Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

Latest Cold, Flu & Cough News and Research

Merck announces FDA Advisory Committee approval of GARDASIL for anal cancer and AIN treatment

Merck announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) Vaccines and Related Biological Products Advisory Committee has advised that the data presented support an indication for GARDASIL® [Human Papillomavirus Quadrivalent (Types 6, 11, 16, and 18) Vaccine, Recombinant] for the prevention of anal cancer and anal intraepithelial neoplasia (AIN) in both males and females 9 through 26 years of age.

18 Nov 2010

Inovio achieves positive results in Phase I PENNVAX-B study for HIV

Inovio Pharmaceuticals, Inc. , a leader in the development of therapeutic and preventive vaccines against cancers and infectious diseases, announced today that it has achieved high vaccine-induced response rates and strong magnitude of immune responses in its Phase I clinical study of PENNVAX-B, a DNA vaccine for the prevention of HIV infection.

18 Nov 2010

Statins activate bacterial-killing properties of white blood cells

Widely prescribed for their cholesterol-lowering properties, recent clinical research indicates that statins can produce a second, significant health benefit: lowering the risk of severe bacterial infections such as pneumonia and sepsis.

18 Nov 2010

BioSante announces sale of oncolytic virus technology to Cold Genesys

BioSante Pharmaceuticals, Inc., today announced it sold to Cold Genesys, Inc. exclusive, worldwide rights to develop and commercialize its oncolytic virus technology. The technology includes CG0070, a replication-competent adenovirus that has completed a Phase I clinical trial for treatment of superficial bladder cancer. In exchange for the technology, BioSante received a 19.9 percent ownership position in Cold Genesys and a $95,000 upfront cash payment and is eligible to receive future milestone and royalty payments.

18 Nov 2010

VX-770 drug candidate improves lung function in people with cystic fibrosis

In a study published in this week's New England Journal of Medicine, treatment with a new drug candidate known as VX-770 resulted in improvements in lung function and markers of disease in a Phase 2 clinical trial of 39 people with cystic fibrosis (CF). There were no discontinuations due to adverse events in the study, and the frequency of adverse events was similar across the study groups.

18 Nov 2010

Nanotrope assay receives U.S. patent for diagnosing influenza and viral infections

Nanotrope, Inc. announced today that it has been issued United States patent #7,829,272 covering its ground-breaking diagnostic test for influenza and other viral infections.

17 Nov 2010

St. Jude organizes tobacco cessation program for cancer survivors who smoke

Cancer survivors who smoke and need help quitting can receive help through a tobacco cessation program organized by St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.

17 Nov 2010

Vical enters agreement with GenomIdea to develop DNA vaccine for pandemic influenza

Vical Incorporated today announced that the company has entered into an evaluation and supply agreement with GenomIdea Inc., a subsidiary of AnGes MG, Inc., for the development of a DNA vaccine for livestock against pandemic influenza.

17 Nov 2010

New supercomputer rating system to be released

A new supercomputer rating system will be released by an international team led by Sandia National Laboratories at the Supercomputing Conference 2010 in New Orleans on Nov. 17.

17 Nov 2010

Canada recognizes Nov. 18 as Antibiotic Awareness Day

Antibiotic resistance is an issue health practitioners around the world face daily. Numerous health-related organizations have partnered to mark tomorrow as the first Canadian Antibiotic Awareness Day in an effort to promote prudent use of antibiotics and fight the threat of antibiotic-resistant bacteria.

17 Nov 2010

NIH awards $10 million to advance technology for painless influenza vaccine delivery patch

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has awarded $10 million to the Georgia Institute of Technology, Emory University and PATH, a Seattle-based nonprofit organization, to advance a technology for the painless, self-administration of flu vaccine using patches containing tiny microneedles that dissolve into the skin.

17 Nov 2010

Study suggests cross-infection with P aeruginosa occurs between CF centers in the UK and Canada

A common transmissible strain of the bacteria Pseudomonas aeruginosa has been identified among cystic fibrosis (CF) patients in Canada, suggesting that cross-infection has occurred widely between CF centers in the United Kingdom and Canada, according to a study in the November 17 issue of JAMA. Infection with this strain among Canadian CF patients has been associated with an increased risk of death or lung transplantation.

17 Nov 2010

FDA partners with CDC to kick off Get Smart about Antibiotics Week

This year, millions of antibiotics will be prescribed. Antibiotics can be used to treat bacterial infections; however, they are commonly over-prescribed. Patients sometimes ask their health care professional to prescribe antibiotic drugs for viral infections, like the common cold, despite the fact that they will not work and may lead to potentially harmful side effects. The misuse of antibiotics has contributed to one of the world's most pressing public health problems today, antibiotic resistance.

17 Nov 2010

Swissmedic approves use of plasma components treated with Cerus' INTERCEPT Blood System

Cerus Corporation announced today that the Swiss regulatory body, Swissmedic, has approved the use of plasma components treated with Cerus' INTERCEPT Blood System.

17 Nov 2010

Medical Acoustics receives UB CAT/NYSTAR grant

Medical Acoustics LLC, a commercial-stage medical device company which employs acoustic technologies for diagnostic and therapeutic medical applications, today announced that it has been awarded a UB CAT/NYSTAR grant.

16 Nov 2010

New mathematical method predicts dominant strain of influenza virus

Rice University scientists have found a way to predict rapidly whether a new strain of the influenza virus should be included in the annual seasonal flu vaccine. While it sometimes takes new flu strains up to three years to become dominant worldwide, the new method can predict whether they will become dominant as little as two weeks after the sequence first appears in the GenBank database, the National Institutes of Health's collection of all publicly available DNA sequences.

16 Nov 2010

National campaign to highlight significance of antibiotic resistance

Antibiotic resistance is one of the world's most pressing public health threats. To bring attention to this increasing problem, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other government partners will observe its third annual Get Smart About Antibiotics Week on Nov. 15-21, 2010.

16 Nov 2010

Researchers develop new vaccine delivery system for rotavirus infection

Researchers have developed a promising new approach to vaccination for rotavirus, a common cause of severe diarrheal disease that is responsible for approximately 500,000 deaths among children in the developing world every year.

16 Nov 2010

Leaders speak at Partnership for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health conference

Education for women is the most important factor for positively influencing the health of women and children, Indian President Pratibha Patil said on Saturday at a meeting in New Delhi of The Partnership for Maternal, Newborn & Child Health (PMNCH), IANS/Sify News reports. "Education is a powerful driver of health. The relationship between poverty, lack of education and limited access to health services, is well recognised," Patil said at the start of the two-day conference (11/13).

16 Nov 2010

BIDMC, IPFnet to conduct clinical trials for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis

Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) will join the Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis Clinical Research Network (IPFnet), a clinical research network sponsored by the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI) to conduct randomized clinical trials to evaluate new and existing medications for the treatment of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). The network is made up of healthcare institutions from around the United States.

16 Nov 2010